The Green Bay Packers maintaining a top-10 defense based on Pro Football Network’s Defense+ metrics is a testament to their players and schemes. For the majority of the year, they’ve been without arguably their best defender, Jaire Alexander, and his chances of returning this season are slim.
What went wrong for the cornerback that has put his playoff availability in jeopardy?
What Is Jaire Alexander’s Injury?
Alexander has had a tough stretch of luck since his remarkable 2022 season. Last season, he was only available for nine games (including the playoffs), and this season has been a similar story.
Initially, an injury to his knee sidelined him from the waning moments of Week 8 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Three weeks later, though, he was back on the field as the Packers looked to extend their 10-game series winning streak against the Chicago Bears.
While Green Bay did manage to make it 11 in a row against their division rivals, they lost Alexander in the process. He was once again taken out after re-aggravating the injury in just 10 snaps. Since then, it’s been a long road to recovery.
But ahead of the Packers’ regular-season finale, Alexander went through a scope on his knee. Shortly thereafter, Green Bay placed him on injured reserve.
When Will Alexander Return?
Alexander’s injury was to his PCL. Yet, when he returned just three weeks later, albeit in a limited capacity, it seemed like he might have a quick recovery time. After the scope, though, an approximate timeline is unlikely to come out.
Alexander’s move to IR essentially knocks him out of the playoffs, with his only opportunity to potentially play is the Super Bowl if the Packers managed to get there. Yet, with the latest comments from head coach Matt LaFleur, it seems unlikely that he will make his return this season.
#Packers coach Matt LaFleur said that CB Jaire Alexander will undergo surgery and will be done for the year. "He was trying to get his knee right and it wasn't getting right. It's a tough deal for everyone. It stinks that we're here, but we're here."
— Tom Silverstein (@TomSilverstein) January 1, 2025
“He was trying to get his knee right and it wasn’t getting right,” LaFleur revealed. “It’s a tough deal for everyone. It stinks that we’re here, but we’re here.”
Then, he confirmed, “I would expect Ja, most likely, is going to be down the rest of the year.”
LaFleur: "I would expect Ja, most likely, is going to be down the rest of the year."
LaFleur confirmed Jaire Alexander is having surgery. #Packers
— Wes Hodkiewicz (@WesHod) January 1, 2025
How Has Alexander’s Absence Impacted the Packers?
After setting a career high in interceptions with five in 2022, along with 56 total tackles, Alexander earned a Pro Bowl and second-team All-Pro selection. But the last two seasons have not gone according to plan for him or the Packers.
Alexander was able to participate in just seven games last season, which included a team suspension in Week 17. This year, he started off strong but was ultimately ineffective due to unavailability.
On the year, Alexander totaled just 16 tackles and two interceptions. Still, Green Bay was able to manage a top-10 scoring defense due to its boom-bust mentality. The team had the third-best takeaway rate and 10th-best sack rate, leading to a wide variance in their weekly defensive output.
On the year, the Packers have 29 takeaways, which ranks fourth in the league. Safety Xavier McKinney has accounted for seven interceptions on his own, the second-best mark in the entire NFL.
However, that does leave them vulnerable against elite offenses, leading to losses against the likes of the Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, and the Philadelphia Eagles. They will take on the latter this weekend after the two teams met in Week 1 in Brazil.
Without Alexander for the entire playoff run, a bulk of coverage duties are going to fall on Carrington Valentine, Eric Stokes, and Keisean Nixon. Expect Valentine to have the biggest workload, as his 46.2 passer rating as a primary defender is the 11th-best mark among 254 players with at least 25 passes thrown their way in the NFL.